By Noah Nayak Fernandez

In 2022, Gerrard Xie dominated in Chinese F4 and Formula Renault Super Challenge, winning 18 of his 20 entries and earning two championship titles. At sixteen, Xie’s early success results from plenty of preseason testing and his determination to win.

“I did a lot, a lot of testing before the races were actually going on,” Xie said. “The first race was in August, so for me I was very prepared for the championship ahead. I think that’s what made the difference compared to the others.”

Following his double championship-winning campaign, Xie moved to the UK to compete in GB3 with Hillspeed. His first season was rocky, only finishing 20th overall in the driver standings. The skill level of the field was a drastic increase, but Xie managed a win at the season finale in Donnington to prove his strength as a driver.

“The first test was quite, quite mind-blowing for me. I think after that I know where the gap is from China to Europe and then I just try to get up there as quickly as possible.” Xie commented.

“I think the win in Donnington is really a confidence boost, and also at that time I knew that next year I was gonna drive for Hitech and I needed to be very confident to drive the car fast. I think that’s a good experience for me, and then that’s what we were planning already as well. I think things are going really well now,” Xie said.

Following his year with Hillspeed, Gerrard Xie made the move to Hitech Pule-Eight to continue his run in GB3. He claimed a race win and two podiums, finishing a comfortable seventh in the driver standings. Xie expressed his satisfaction with the team, explaining how they helped improve his race craft through continued support.

“They just have so much quality in the squad, they’re just looking deeply into details and we work together nicely to help me improve as a driver. The results will happen when you stay calm and just keep pushing,” Xie commented.

Gerrard Xie has participated in other championships as well, including Euroformula Open and Formula Regional Oceania. This has gotten him valuable track time on circuits like Spa, where he will eventually revisit in Formula 3. Xie loved New Zealand, appreciating the country and the competition he faced. “It’s like a lot of top European drivers and then some top American drivers to compete with, which is really special.”

Gerrard Xie makes the jump to FIA Formula 3

Photo credits: Hitech TGR

Last month, Xie made his start in FIA Formula 3 with Hitech TGR at the Australian Grand Prix, though he faced many limiting factors. Notably, he had little track time to get used to his new car, and he faced a much more competitive field than ever before. However, Xie has appreciated the quality of the car and the support from the team, as well as the high level of competition.

“I actually found out the new car is quite nice to combine into the corner. Usually we expect it’s gonna be more like F2, it’s gonna be very heavy but it’s actually the opposite,” Xie explained. “I think the most important thing is to prepare before the event with the team. Compared to GB3, we looked a lot more into details even before hitting the track.”

“[In GB3 and Formula Regional Oceania] the top 10 are really strong as well. But I think in Formula 3 it’s the top 10 of all of those drivers together, and then just make it really competitive,” Gerrard Xie said. “In the Bahrain test on day 3, one second is covered by 28 drivers, so if you have a slight under-rotation in your flying lap you might lose 5 to 7 places which is crazy.”

Ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix, Gerrard Xie is preparing rigorously to achieve a good result, focusing on “trying to nail the details” and doing his best on track. The high braking zones suit him well in this car, and he is “quite close” to his teammate Martinius in performance on track.

Photo credits: Hitech TGR

Gerrard Xie is adapting well to new circumstances, now traveling across the world and training hard to get stronger early on in the season. He feels his car is very balanced, and he hasn’t yet found any favorable features due to his limited mileage. He also has to deal with tyre degradation, which ends up being a tradeoff between early race pace and tyre longevity. Regardless, Xie still enjoys the car a lot, saying “the car is really fun to drive,” as he looks forward to the rest of his season.

This weekend, Gerrard Xie will make a start in the Bahrain Grand Prix, hoping to earn some points and improve his race craft. He will be racing in the Sprint Race and Feature Race on Saturday and Sunday respectively. Despite only having one practice session, Xie has raced here in F3 testing, and is keen on getting good results this weekend.

Weekend Schedule (GMT+3)

April 11, 2025

Practice – 10:55-11:40

Qualifying – 16:00-16:30

April 12, 2025

Sprint Race – 13:15-14:00

April 13, 2025

Feature Race – 12:55-13:40